Italy thought of a crazy way to boost tourism — and it involves giving away free castles

A
view of the sail boats taking part in the 47nd edition of the
traditional "Barcolana" regatta in the gulf of Trieste,
north-eastern Italy, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015. The Barcolana is an
annual sailing race in the Gulf of Trieste with hundreds of
participants which is described by the organizers as "everybody's
regatta." In foreground, the Miramare Castle.AP
Photo/Paolo Giovannini

If you’ve ever wanted to live in an Italian castle for the low
low price of absolutely nothing, today is your lucky day.

Thanks to a new scheme by the country’s government-run
State Property Agency, Italy is giving away 103 castles, towers,
inns, farmhouses, and monasteries for free.

Of course, there’s a catch—sort of. If you acquire one of
these disused properties, you have to transform the building
“into facilities for pilgrims, hikers, tourists, and
cyclists,” Roberto Reggi from the State
Property Agencytold The
Local Italy. In other words, you have to take a
building that’s fallen into disrepair and turn into a hotel,
restaurant, or maybe one of those cool cafe/bookstores that you
sometimes find in repurposed churches around Europe.

The idea is to boost tourism to the eight historic
districts in which these properties are located. Given that these
districts run along the shimmering coastline and through the
breathtaking countryside all the way down to Sicily, it seems
like this should be a pretty easy thing to do.

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Not to mention that many of these routes are of
interesting historical value, likeVia Francigena,
an ancient route that pilgrims took to get from Europe to Puglia
and the Holy Land via Rome. Others offer breathtaking scenery for
cyclists, like the Ciclovia VenTo, which takes you from Venice to
Turin on the banks of the Po. You can see pictures of the
properties on offer by clicking on the route thatinterests
you on their website.

To get your hands on one of these properties, you have
tosubmit a
proposal via their website, describing how you
plan to transform the location into the new international hotspot
(related question: how easy is it to install wifi in a medieval
monastery?). The application period is open until June 26, and
special preference is given to people under 40, in order to
foster young entrepreneurs.

If you’re successful, you will be given the property
rights to the building for 9 years, with the option of
extending for another nine years after that. Work is expected
to start next summer.

If you don’t manage to score a castle, however, don’t
despair. The project, which is backed by Italy’s Ministry of
Tourism, plans to include 200 more buildings within the next
to years, in an effort to attract more visitors to these
gorgeous villages tucked away just off the beaten
path.